Generosity = Not Withholding the Message
“Rooftop Evangelism”
If you attended SOMA last weekend, you heard our keynote speaker, Chris Brown, share the story of the paralytic man from Mark 2, also known as “Paralyzed Pete,” as Chris referred to him. You’re probably somewhat familiar with the story even if you didn’t hear his retelling of it (not to be missed).
Four friends are on their way to hear Jesus speak at a house in their neighborhood. As they’re walking, they decide to go get their friend, Paralyzed Pete, and bring him to the house so that Jesus might heal him.
When they got to the house with Pete in tow, they realized they couldn’t get into the room where Jesus was teaching because of the huge crowd. So they did what anyone in their shoes would have done. Naturally, they decided to crawl up on top of the house, dig a hole in the roof, and lower Pete down so he’d be dangling right in front of Jesus. That’s a sure fire way not to be missed.
When Jesus saw Pete hanging there in front of him, he told Pete that his sins were forgiven and then he healed him of his paralysis. The healing was not only physical but spiritual as well. It was Jesus flexing his God-muscles for all to see—“in order that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins” (Mark 2:10).
As was pointed out at SOMA, one of the more remarkable elements of this story is the four friends who stopped at nothing to get their friend, Pete, to Jesus. I loved how that story was used as an example of generosity. I had never thought of it that way. These friends of Pete went over and above to be sure Pete got to experience the life changing power of Christ.
There’s a nuance to this story that I really love. It’s the kind of thing that could be missed but is very important all the same. Mark 2:5 tells us, “when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ‘son, your sins are forgiven.’”
Who’s faith is being referred to here? That’s right. The four friends who brought Pete to Jesus. Because of their faith, Pete was healed.
We could learn a lot from these four friends. They teach us the delicate balance of faith and works. We need to believe on behalf of those who don’t know Christ—believe that someday they will know him. But we also might need to do something about it!
If the four friends would have never gone to Pete’s house and picked him up and brought him to the house where Jesus was teaching, chances are, things would have turned out a lot differently. What good would it have done if the four friends just believed but never took Paralyzed Pete to hear the message?
If we believe that Jesus can heal, save, and set free, are we giving that message to others? Or are we just praying without proclaiming?
It’s easy to withhold the message of Christ. We do it all the time. There are all sorts of things that get in the way—our fears, our insecurities, our doubts, our schedules. If we have a message we believe in, the generous thing to do would be to share it with another, right? Like the four friends from Mark chapter 2, that might mean doing something radically unexpected, even something revolutionarily uncouth.
I think Jesus commented on the faith of the four friends because it was faith in action. It wasn’t just sit-around-a-circle-and-pray-for-Pete kind of faith. It was bring-him-to-the-home-and-saw-a-hole-in-the-roof-so-Jesus-can-touch-him kind of faith. I bet that impressed Jesus. Those were his kind of guys. Hearers and doers.
Are we those kind of guys? Are we bringing people to the message of Christ and/or bringing the message of Christ to people? Are we sharing with others how Christ has changed our lives? If we are those kind of people, I believe we’re exhibiting a kind of generosity that matters and matters and matters . . . all the way to eternity.
- Leeana
LeeanaTankersley@DIVEintoFLOOD.com
If you would like to learn more about the message of Christ, join us at our next New to Faith class. Email MindiHopper@DIVEintoFLOOD.com for more information.